Rajendra Saini

𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚’𝐬 𝐒𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐇𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐫𝐬! The semiconductor industry in India is experiencing an unprecedented hiring boom — gradually chipping away at IT placements and opening exciting opportunities for engineers across domains. 🔹 End-to-end hiring: RTL/SoC design, verification, embedded systems, manufacturing (process, packaging, yield). 🔹 Freshers’ salaries: ₹6–12 LPA (vs. ₹3–4 LPA in IT). 🔹 Aggressive campus recruitment from tier-2 & tier-3 colleges, not just IITs. 🔹 Internships: ₹40k–50k/month stipends to build hands-on chip design skills. 🔹 Hiring scale: ~12,000 freshers annually (up from 8,000 last year). 🔹 Career growth: Roles extend up to ₹20–120 LPA for architects & leaders. Fuelled by global supply chain shifts, EVs, telecom, defence, and government initiatives (DLI, PLI, ECMS), this hiring surge is reshaping student aspirations, especially in ECE and core engineering branches. With India projected to hit $103B semiconductor market by 2030, this is the right time for students and professionals to align their skills with VLSI, Embedded Systems, AI/ML hardware, and semiconductor manufacturing. The future is semiconductor — and India is powering ahead as a global hub! https://lnkd.in/gKtU5Gn2 #Semiconductor #VLSI #ChipDesign #EmbeddedSystems #Electronics #SoC #SemiconductorIndia #SemiconductorJobs #SemiconductorTalent #HiringTrends #Careers #ECE #Engineering #SemiconductorEcosystem #MakeInIndia #Innovation #ElectronicsManufacturing #FutureOfWork #AI #ML #Hardware #Manufacturing #IndiaSemiconductorMission

826

26 Comments

Part (1 of 3) Tools and ecosystem Helping Electronics Engineers Get Started with VLSI (the Free & Open Way) Over the last few months, I’ve met a lot of young engineers eager to learn VLSI; verification, formal or physical design; but unsure where to start without expensive tools or licenses. The good news? You can go surprisingly far using completely free and open-source tools that are very close to what’s used in the industry. Here’s a simple domain-wise list to get you started, with tools and quick examples to try on your laptop. 1. RTL Design & Simulation Yosys : learn synthesis and netlist generation from Verilog. Example: synthesize a small counter or ALU module and inspect its netlist. Icarus Verilog : lightweight simulator to run RTL and testbenches. Verilator : converts RTL to C++ model for high-speed simulation. GTKWave : simple waveform viewer to see your signal transitions. 2. Design Verification (DV) cocotb : a Py-based testbench framework; you can write your tests in Python instead of SystemVerilog. Example: test a UART or simple FIFO, add checkers and scoreboards. Combine Verilator + cocotb to build a mini verification environment. 3. Formal Verification SymbiYosys (with Yosys) : great way to learn how formal works. Example: prove that an arbiter never gives grants to two masters at the same time. 4. Physical Design (PD) OpenLane / OpenROAD : complete open RTL-to-GDS flow. Perfect to understand place, route, and timing closure. Example: run a small design like a RISC-V core or counter through it. Magic and KLayout : view and analyze layouts, run DRC/LVS, explore geometries. OpenSTA : for basic static timing analysis practice. 5. Open-Source IPs to Learn From Use these to learn integration, RTL debug, and SoC-level bring-up: PicoRV32, Ibex, or VexRiscv for CPU cores. OpenCores for UART, SPI, and bus interfaces. LiteX or MiSoC to practice integrating multiple IPs into a small SoC. 6. Try These 4 Starter Projects Run a blink program on a small RISC-V SoC (PicoRV32). Write a cocotb testbench for an OpenCores UART. Use SymbiYosys to check an arbiter or FSM formally. Run OpenLane on your RTL and generate your own GDS layout. Everything here is free, runs on a normal laptop, and builds real skills that connect theory to practice. If you’re a fresher or mentoring one, do add your findings or additional references to help others. More Open IPs to Explore RocketChip (Berkeley RISC-V core) Ariane / CVA6 (high-performance 64-bit RISC-V core) BOOM (Out-of-order RISC-V core) Wishbone peripherals (from OpenCores library) Ethernet MAC, USB, and DDR controllers (LiteX ecosystem) TinyGPU (open GPU arch for learning compute pipelines) OpenDRAM and OpenRAM (for memory controller and SRAM generation concepts) OpenTitan (security-focused open project) #VLSI #Semiconductors #ChipDesign #OpenSourceEDA #RTLDesign #Verification #FormalVerification #PhysicalDesign #DV #ASIC #RISCVDigital #LearningByDoing #OpenHardware

123

3 Comments

DDR5 DRAM MODULE TECHNOLOGY DDR5 DRAM technology, the fifth generation of Double Data Rate Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory, offers significant performance improvements over DDR4 with higher bandwidth, lower power consumption, and enhanced data integrity, including on-die error correction code (ECC). Key Features and Advantages: 1. Increased Bandwidth: DDR5 delivers up to twice the bandwidth compared to DDR4, enabling faster data transfer rates and improved system performance. 2. Lower Power Consumption: DDR5 operates at a lower voltage (1.1V) and incorporates on-module power management integrated circuits (PMICs) for better energy efficiency. 3. Enhanced Data Integrity: DDR5 features on-die ECC, which detects and corrects errors before they reach the CPU, leading to more robust and reliable memory performance. 4. Dual 32-bit Subchannels: DDR5 utilizes two independent 32-bit subchannels on a single module, allowing for increased data transfer efficiency and improved scaling performance. 5. Increased Banks and Burst Length: DDR5 doubles the number of banks (16 to 32) and the minimum burst length (8 to 16), further enhancing data bus efficiency and reducing the number of reads/writes to access the same cache data line. 6. Scalable Memory: DDR5 is designed to support higher capacities and speeds, making it suitable for demanding applications like gaming, content creation, and data centers. 7. Improved Performance: DDR5 offers a significant performance boost for CPUs and platforms that require more cores and memory bandwidth. 8. On-die ECC: All DDR5 chips have on-die error-correction code, that detects and corrects errors before sending data to the CPU, to improve reliability and allow denser RAM chips which lowers per-chip defect rate. 9. Power Management Integrated Circuits (PMIC): Regulates the power required by the various components of the memory module. 

113

2 Comments

🚀 ChipIN Centre is now empowering ~350 𝐨𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 across India 🇮🇳 (𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 280 𝘢𝘤𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘪𝘤 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 70 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘵-𝘶𝘱𝘴) with access to cutting-edge EDA tools, Compute Hw, Emulator & FPGA, Fab VCA, Trainings and R&D funding. 💡Driving innovation and capability in semiconductor design in collaboration with - Synopsys Inc | Cadence | Siemens | Keysight Technologies | Ansys | Silvaco Inc | Xilinx | IBM | Renesas Electronics | imec | #SCLMohali 👉 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 280+ 𝐚𝐜𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐂2𝐒 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐞 🌐 https://lnkd.in/d4jcb7e2 👉 𝐋𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐟 70+ 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭-𝐮𝐩𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐋𝐈 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐞 🌐 https://lnkd.in/d928jFbF Read for available support for National chip design infrastructure at https://lnkd.in/dUPA4r4f #ChipsforViksitBharat #DigitalIndia #IndiaTechade #C2SProgramme #DLIScheme Ashwini Vaishnaw | S Krishnan | Abhishek Singh | ashok chandak | Sanjeev Keskar

148

🔍 Why Is VLSI Recruitment So Challenging? 🤔 If you've ever tried hiring in the VLSI domain, you know it’s no walk in the park. From sourcing to onboarding, it’s a tough game—and here’s why: 💡 1. Niche Skill Set: VLSI isn't just another tech buzzword—it’s a highly specialized field requiring deep knowledge in areas like digital design, verification, physical design, and semiconductor fundamentals. Not every engineer can make the cut. 📉 2. Limited Talent Pool: The number of engineers trained in VLSI (especially hands-on experience) is much smaller compared to general software roles. Even fewer have experience with industry tools like Synopsys, Cadence, or Mentor. 🏫 3. Gap Between Academia & Industry: Universities often focus on theoretical aspects, while the industry demands practical expertise. This disconnect makes it harder for fresh grads to be job-ready, slowing down the hiring funnel. ⚙️ 4. Long Training Time: Even if you find good candidates, ramping them up takes months. Companies are cautious because hiring the wrong candidate in a chip design role is costly—literally. 📍 5. High Competition: Big players, startups, and fabs alike are all fishing from the same pond. Good candidates are often snapped up before you even get through the interview process. 🎯 What's the way forward? Partner closely with academic institutions for curriculum alignment Offer internships & co-op programs to create a future talent pipeline Invest in upskilling passionate engineers from adjacent domains Streamline and speed up your hiring process Let’s talk about how we can make VLSI hiring more sustainable and scalable. Are you facing the same challenges? Drop your thoughts below! 👇 #VLSI #Semiconductors #HiringChallenges #TalentAcquisition #ChipDesign #EDA #VLSIHiring #Recruitment

35